White paper: technology for surgical telementoring-SAGES Project 6 Technology Working Group

Background: Recent advances in telecommunication technology and video conferencing systems have opened a new avenue for surgical instruction called "surgical telementoring." This report from the Technology Working Group of the SAGES Project 6 Summit reviews the telementoring technology that currently exists and proposes recommendations for minimum technology requirements and future technology development. While also providing insight in regulatory considerations, this review offers what prospective surgical telementoring participants need to know about the underlying technology with a specific focus on safety, reliability, transmission quality, ease of use, and cost. Methods: Content experts from around the world, in minimally invasive surgery, surgical mentoring and telementoring, surgical education, business development, healthcare innovation, and regulation were invited to attend a 2-day summit in Los Angeles, USA to outline the current state of surgical telementoring and chart the challenges and opportunities going forward. This article summarizes the discussion, conclusions, and recommendation of the technology group with regard to telementoring technology. Results: This article reviews the technical requirements which can be divided into the following categories: (1) safety, (2) reliability, (3) transmission quality, (4) ease of use, and (5) cost. Conclusion: Telementoring applications are technology driven. Given the pace of change of technology, guiding principles in